The old adage, “people love to buy, but hate to be sold” is rephrased from the seller side to “salespeople love to win, but hate to lose.” Sales management might say “I want to help salespeople win, but win the right business.” The key is the hot pursuit of a win can backfire if salespeople are going after deals that aren’t profitable.

In “Outliers,” a fascinating look at what separates high achievers from the rest of us, author Malcolm Gladwell cites a study that suggests it takes 10,000 hours of deliberate practice to develop expert-level performance.

Profitable growth is the top goal of every company. What will a marketer say if you ask, “What is the most important contribution you make to driving profitable growth?” What if you ask a salesperson the exact same question about marketing’s role? Will the answers be the same?